Putin agrees to extend gas discount for Ukraine for next 3 months

Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to extend Ukraine’s gas discount until the end of June, after a request from Gazprom on Monday.

"Let's do it [extend the
discount – Ed.]"-
Putin said Tuesday.“Today’s terms will remain in
effect for another three months. But taking into account that the
final gas price for our international consumers, one way or
another depends on the oil price, and the oil price on the global
markets is highly volatile, in three months we’ll have to check
what’s going on in the sector and after that make supplementary
decision,” the president said.

The discount on Russian gas supplies
to Ukraine in the second quarter of 2015 will be equal to that of
the first quarter, according to Russia’s presidential press
secretary, Dmitry Peskov. He has stated that
the
so-called'winter package'package is being prolonged for three
months without changes. In the first quarter, Ukraine secured a
discount on Russian natural gas equal to the export duty rate but
not more than $100 per 1,000 cubic meters and paid$329 per thousand cubic
meters for Russian gas.

Earlier the head of
Gazprom Aleksey Miller said the company had asked the Russian
government for a 3-month extension to the discount on gas for
Ukraine.

At a meeting with the president, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
said lower export duties
are not favorable for the Russian budget, but taking into account
Ukraine’s difficult economic situation, Gazprom’s and
Ukraine’s request could be supported provided the basic terms of
the contract between Gazprom and Naftogaz are adhered
to,including“paying back all the debts
accumulated so far.”